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The best-yet image of Ultima Thule taken by the wide-angle Multicolor Visible Imaging Camera (MVIC) is now online. The image shows a large circular depression, and many smaller depressions. These were not visible in the earlier, lower resolution image. Ultima Thule measures approximately 30 kilometers (18 miles) in diameter, and is irregularly shaped. Even better […]

The best-yet image of Ultima Thule taken by the wide-angle Multicolor Visible Imaging Camera (MVIC) is now online. The image shows a large circular depression, and many smaller depressions. These were not visible in the earlier, lower resolution image. Ultima Thule measures approximately 30 kilometers (18 miles) in diameter, and is irregularly shaped. Even better future images are expected.

The principal investigator, Alan Stern, as well as eight other systems designers, teach Spacecraft Design courses for the Applied Technology Institute (ATI or ATIcourses). If you are working in Space and Spacecraft it is good to take classes and learn from real-world experts who have designed and operated successful spacecraft. Why not learn from the best? Click on this blog post to see the New Horizons designers and the specific classes that they teach.

Applied Technology Institute has been following the New Horizons Mission to Pluto for years (since launch in 2006). Now New Horizons continued to the Kuiper Belt object (KBO) nicknamed MU69 Ultima Thule. New Horizons fly past and imaged the Ultima Thule on January 1, 2019. High-resolution images are only now being transmitted back and released to the public.

The best source for these images is http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/News-Article.phpThis link provides an ongoing source of featured images.

New Horizons is approximately 4.13 billion miles (6.64 billion kilometers) from Earth, operating normally and speeding away from the Sun (and Ultima Thule) at more than 31,500 miles (50,700 kilometers) per hour. At that distance, a radio signal reaches Earth six hours and nine minutes after leaving the spacecraft.

There are so many Space Exploration Missions that are on the front page of the papers now, New Horizons for example. Let us not forget about ongoing missions that are no longer getting as much publicity at they may deserve, JPL Mars Science Lab Curiosity Rover Mission for example.The Curiosity Rover Mission was launched in […]

There are so many Space Exploration Missions that are on the front page of the papers now, New Horizons for example. Let us not forget about ongoing missions that are no longer getting as much publicity at they may deserve, JPL Mars Science Lab Curiosity Rover Mission for example.

The Curiosity Rover Mission was launched in November 2011 for an 8-month trip to Mars. Once on Mars, the Curiosity Mission was expected to last 2 years. Amazingly, the Curiosity Rover Mission is still in progress, and periodic updates on the status of that mission are still being posted at https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/mission/mars-rover-curiosity-mission-updates/

The success of that mission did not start when the Rover started sending back amazing pictures from Mars. The success of that mission started when the Rocket and Launch Vehicle propelled Rover into Space. The Atlas V-541 Rocket selected for this mission and built by Boeing Corp and Lockheed Martin Corp. performed as designed. If it had not performed as well as it did, the entire mission could have been in jeopardy. Rockets and Launch Vehicles are truly acritical component of every mission.

ATI is offering a Course on Rocket and Launch Vehicles in Columbia, Maryland from February 11 to 14, 2019. The course is being taught by Edward Keith, a multi-discipline Launch Vehicle System Engineer, specializing in integration of launch vehicle technology, design, modeling and business strategies. There is still time to enroll in this class, and you will be finished in time to get home for dinner on Valentine’s day!

This three-day course is designed for engineers in the field of submarine R&D and Operational Test and Evaluation. It is an introductory course presenting the fundamental philosophy of submarine design, submerged operation and combat system employment as they are managed by a battle-tested submarine organization that all-in-all make a US submarine a very cost-effective warship at sea—and under it.

Today’s US submarine tasking is discussed in consonance with the strategy and policy of the US, and the goals, objectives, mission, functions, tasks, responsibilities, and roles of the US Navy as they are so funded. Submarine warfare is analyzed referencing some calculations for a Benefits-to-Cost analysis, in that, Submarines Sink Ships!

From this course you will gain a better understanding of submarine warships being stealth-oriented, cost-effective combat systems at sea. Those who have worked with specific submarine sub-systems will find that this course will clarify the rationale and essence of their interface with one another. Attendees will receive copies of the presentation along with some relevant white papers.

What You Will LearnDifferences in submarine types (SSN/SSBN/ SSGN)Submarine onboard organization and day to day operationsBasic Fundamentals of submarine systems and sensorsSubmarine Mission profilesBasics of Submarine Warfare tactical and operational controlHow submarines support national military objectivesMakeup and function of the Submarine Support EnterpriseHow the sea impacts submarine operationsSubmarine Maintenance Cycles – Supporting the Tip of the Spear

Differences in submarine types (SSN/SSBN/ SSGN)Submarine onboard organization and day to day operationsBasic Fundamentals of submarine systems and sensorsSubmarine Mission profilesBasics of Submarine Warfare tactical and operational controlHow submarines support national military objectivesMakeup and function of the Submarine Support EnterpriseHow the sea impacts submarine operationsSubmarine Maintenance Cycles – Supporting the Tip of the Spear

On New Year’s Day, the New Horizons spacecraft, which flew past Pluto in 2015, will be making another flyby. NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has been whizzing toward Ultima Thule ever since it completed its primary mission: the historic Pluto flyby of July 2015. The overall trip was 13 years and 4 Billion miles. NASA estimates […]

On New Year’s Day, the New Horizons spacecraft, which flew past Pluto in 2015, will be making another flyby. NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has been whizzing toward Ultima Thule ever since it completed its primary mission: the historic Pluto flyby of July 2015.

The overall trip was 13 years and 4 Billion miles. NASA estimates that the probe will arrive at its new destination at 12:33 A.M. Eastern time on New Year’s Day (01/01/2019) and engineers have devised a carefully-calculated trajectory to ensure it gets to Thule safely. This will be the most distant flyby ever conducted.

Follow the news at http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/Where-to-Watch.php

I have been personally inspired by the success of the New Horizons’ mission. I was present at JHU/APL for the July 2015 Pluto flyby and briefings. Many of the New Horizons engineers continue to teach ATI engineering and science training courses based on their first-hand real-world experience. This has been a high success, 13-year project that may continue to other new objects as the spacecraft is healthy and still performing well. I hope so.

See their information athttps://www.aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2018/12/19/new-horizons-spacecraft-approaches-ultima-thule/

Related blog post:1. https://www.aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2018/12/19/new-horizons-spacecraft-approaches-ultima-thule/2. NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft is 15.96 astronomical units (about 2.39 billion kilometers, or 1.48 billion miles) from the Sun3. NASA New Horizons spacecraft on the way to rendezvous with planet Pluto4. The New Horizons Mission to Pluto–Ten Experts Who Worked Behind-the-Scenes On the New Horizons Mission and Who Teach for ATIcourses.5. New Horizons: Recollections of Ground System Engineer, Steve Gemeny6. New Horizons – This was almost a disaster, but was saved by knowledgeable scientists.7. New Horizons Flyover of Pluto

The Kuiper Belt is a vastly-unexplored region of the solar system filled with Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs), and NASA expects to learn more about these objects after the new year; that’s when the space agency’s New Horizons probe will visit an icy body known to astronomers as Ultima Thule(previously 2014 MU69).NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has been […]

The Kuiper Belt is a vastly-unexplored region of the solar system filled with Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs), and NASA expects to learn more about these objects after the new year; that’s when the space agency’s New Horizons probe will visit an icy body known to astronomers as Ultima Thule(previously 2014 MU69).

NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has been whizzing toward Ultima Thule ever since it completed its primary mission: the historic Pluto flyby of 2015. NASA estimates that the probe will arrive at its new destination at 12:33 A.M. Eastern time on New Year’s Day and engineers have devised a carefully-calculated trajectory to ensure it gets there safely.

The Kuiper Belt is full of variously-sized space rocks, much like the asteroid belt found between Mars and Jupiter. That said, NASA’s New Horizons hazard watch team has been on the constant lookout for any hazards that could prevent New Horizons from reaching its destination safely.

New Horizons Space craft has been in the news for a while.

A few of ATI instructors have been a part of this groundbreaking project.

Space remote sensing can provide the big picture of the Record-Breaking Fires in California. We had family members living in Paradise, California. Their home and their veterinary business were totally destroyed. They have to effectively restart their lives. Those burn scars include the traces of the Camp Fire that destroyed the town of Paradise in […]

Space remote sensing can provide the big picture of the Record-Breaking Fires in California. We had family members living in Paradise, California. Their home and their veterinary business were totally destroyed. They have to effectively restart their lives.

Those burn scars include the traces of the Camp Fire that destroyed the town of Paradise in mid-November. That fire became the deadliest fire in California’s history after it killed at least 85 people.

Missile Defense is a complex problem for the US and US allies such as Israel and Poland. The US Department of Defense has a layered approach of different systems to detect threat missile launches and then to intercept and destroy the incoming missiles. Defense systems include1. Phalanx Close-In Weapons System (CIWS)2. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense […]

Missile Defense is a complex problem for the US and US allies such as Israel and Poland. The US Department of Defense has a layered approach of different systems to detect threat missile launches and then to intercept and destroy the incoming missiles.

Equally as interesting are the detailed comments from the Breaking Defense readers that appear at the end of the article. The comments focus on costs and the relative costs of the missiles used by the attackers (say for example North Korea or Iran) and the missile defense system missiles. ATI is interested in your comments about the article and open source articles about Missile Defense Systems cost and performance. ATI has many relevant technical training courses that help to understand the technology and components of Missile Defense Systems. These courses can be presented on-site at your facility or at publically scheduled open enrollment courses. Please email your requests to ati@aticourses.com

Applied Technology Institute (ATI or ATIcourses) has been following the New Horizons Mission to Pluto for years (since launch in 2006). Now New Horizons is on to the Kuiper Belt object (KBO) nicknamed Ultima Thule. New Horizons will fly past and image the Ultima Thule on January 1, 2019. Several of ATI instructors have been […]

Applied Technology Institute (ATI or ATIcourses) has been following the New Horizons Mission to Pluto for years (since launch in 2006). Now New Horizons is on to the Kuiper Belt object (KBO) nicknamed Ultima Thule. New Horizons will fly past and image the Ultima Thule on January 1, 2019.

Several of ATI instructors have been lead scientists for the New Horizons mission. If you are working in Space and Spacecraft it is good to take classes and learn from real-world experts who have designed and operated successful spacecraft.

This is a good article to keep you up to date.https://www.space.com/42252-new-horizons-team-ultima-thule-flyby.html?

If you have interest ATI can send you updates in on our blog and our newsletter.https://secure.campaigner.com/CSB/Public/Form.aspx

Background

New Horizons is a space probe launched by NASA on 19 January 2006, to the dwarf planet Pluto and on an escape trajectory from the Sun. It is the first man-made spacecraft to go to Pluto. Its flight took eight years. It arrived at the Pluto–Charon system on July 14, 2015. It flew near Pluto and took photographs and measurements while it passed. At about 1 kilobit per second, it took 15 months to transmit them back to Earth.

ATI instructors who helped plan, develop and engineer the New Horizons Mission. These include the following engineers and scientists, with their bios and links to their related ATI courses.

1. Dr. Alan Stern http://aticourses.com/planetary_science.htm

Dr. Alan Stern is a planetary scientist, space program executive, aerospace consultant, and author. In 2010, he was elected to be the President and CEO of The Golden Spike Company, a commercial space corporation planning human lunar expeditions. Additionally, since 2009, he has been an Associate Vice President at the Southwest Research Institute, and since 2008 has had his own aerospace consulting practice.Dr. Stern is the Principal Investigator (PI) of NASA’s $720M New Horizon’s Pluto-Kuiper Belt mission, the largest PI-led space mission ever launched by NASA. New Horizons launched in 2006 and arrived on July 14, 2015. Dr. Stern is also the PI of two instruments aboard New Horizons, the Alice UV spectrometer and the Ralph Visible Imager/IR Spectrometer.

Eric Hoffman has designed space-borne communications and navigation equipment and performed systems engineering on many APL satellites and communications systems. He has authored over 60 papers and holds 8 patents in these fields. Mr. Hoffman was involved in the proposal (as well as several prior Pluto mission concepts). He chaired the major system-level design reviews (and now teaches the course Effective Design Reviews). He was Space Department Chief Engineer during the concept, design, fabrication, and test of New Horizons. His still actively consulting in the field. He is an Associate Fellow of the AIAA and coauthor of the leading textbook Fundamentals of Space Systems

Chris DeBoy leads the RF Engineering Group in the Space Department at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, and is a member of APL’s Principal Professional Staff. He has over 20 years of experience in satellite communications, from systems engineering (he is the lead RF communications engineer for the New Horizons Mission to Pluto) to flight hardware design for both Low-Earth orbit and deep-space missions. He holds a BSEE from Virginia Tech, a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Johns Hopkins, and teaches the satellite communications course for the Johns Hopkins University.

Douglas Mehoke is the Assistant Group Supervisor and Technology Manager for the Mechanical System Group in the Space Department at The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. He has worked in the field of spacecraft and instrument thermal design for 30 years, and has a wide background in the fields of heat transfer and fluid mechanics. He has been the lead thermal engineer on a variety spacecraft and scientific instruments, including MSX, CONTOUR, and New Horizons. He is presently the Technical Lead for the development of the Solar Probe Plus Thermal Protection System. He was the original thermal engineer for New Horizons, the mechanical system engineer, and is currently the spacecraft damage lead for the flyby Hazard Team. Other JHU/APL are currently teaching the Spacecraft Thermal Control course.

6. Steven Gemeny http://www.aticourses.com/ground_systems_design.htm

Steve Gemeny is a Principal Program Engineer and a former Senior Member of the Professional Staff at The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, where he served as Ground Station Lead for the TIMED mission to explore Earth’s atmosphere and Lead Ground System Engineer on the New Horizons mission to explore Pluto by 2020. Mr. Gemeny is an experienced professional in the field of Ground Station and Ground System design in both the commercial world and on NASA Science missions with a wealth of practical knowledge spanning nearly three decades. Mr. Gemeny delivers his experiences and knowledge to his ATIcourses’ students with an informative and entertaining presentation style. Mr Gemeny is Director Business Development at Syntonics LLC, working in RF over fiber product enhancement, new application development for RF over fiber technology, oversight of advanced DOD SBIR/STTR research and development activities related to wireless sensors and software defined antennas.

John Penn is currently the Team Lead for RFIC Design at Army Research Labs. Previously, he was a full-time engineer at the Applied Physics Laboratory for 26 years where he contributed to the New Horizons Mission. He joined the Army Research Laboratory in 2008. Since 1989, he has been a part-time professor at Johns Hopkins University where he teaches RF & Microwaves I & II, MMIC Design, and RFIC Design. He received a B.E.E. from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1980, an M.S. (EE) from Johns Hopkins University (JHU) in 1982, and a second M.S. (CS) from JHU in 1988.

Timothy Cole is a leading authority with 30 years of experience exclusively working in electro-optical systems as a system and design engineer. While at Applied Physics Laboratory for 21 years, Tim was awarded the NASA Achievement Award in connection with the design, development, and operation of the Near-Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) Laser Radar and was also the initial technical lead for the New Horizons LOng-Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI instrument). He has presented technical papers addressing space-based laser altimetry all over the US and Europe. His industry experience has been focused on the systems engineering and analysis associated development of optical detectors, wireless ad hoc remote sensing, exoatmospheric sensor design and now leads ICESat-2 ATLAS altimeter calibration effort.

9. Jay Jenkins http://www.aticourses.com/spacecraft_solar_arrays.htm

Jay Jenkins is a Systems Engineer in the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate at NASA and an Associate Fellow of the AIAA. His 24-year aerospace career provided many years of experience in design, analysis, and test of aerospace power systems, solar arrays, and batteries. His career has afforded him opportunities for hands-on fabrication and testing, concurrent with his design responsibilities. He was recognized as a winner of the ASME International George Westinghouse Silver Medal for his development of the first solar arrays beyond Mars’ orbit and the first solar arrays to orbit the planet, Mercury. He was recognized with two Best Paper Awards in the area of Aerospace Power Systems.See some of ATI’s earlier blog postshttps://www.aticourses.com/blog/index.php/tag/douglas-mehoke/https://www.aticourses.com/blog/index.php/tag/mission-operations-center-at-apl/

Nothing is cuter than pictures of kids sitting at their computers, mastering skills their parents never dreamed of. And nothing is more popular than the current idea that all children should learn to code.My husband, Philip, & I strongly support this idea. He has been in IT since he was 18 years old and wants […]

Nothing is cuter than pictures of kids sitting at their computers, mastering skills their parents never dreamed of. And nothing is more popular than the current idea that all children should learn to code.

My husband, Philip, & I strongly support this idea. He has been in IT since he was 18 years old and wants our oldest daughter, Alice, to get involved in the IT field as well.

Alice is an 8 year old and extremely active child. When we introduced her to coding she was hooked! She spent hours working on her coding projects. It was so wonderful to see her working with her father and asking questions when she hit a difficult task.

Yesterday, she received a certificate of completion stating that she has demonstrated an understanding of basic concepts of Computer Science.

We couldn’t be more proud!

Here is the list of the main sources that could be tapped for teaching kids how to code:

Code.orgThis nonprofit foundation website is a great starting point for coding novices. It shares plenty of useful online resources, apps, and even local schools that teach coding. Be sure to watch the inspirational video on the main page. Updated periodically, the current iteration features some of the biggest names in tech talking about how they got started in coding.

Code AvengersWhile Code Avengers lacks the eye-catching graphics of other options, it does offer a series of free intro classes in building web pages, apps, and games. Get started with the 7-day free trial, which grants access to the first five lessons in each course, ranging from Python, to web development, JavaScript, and more. If you like what you see, register for a membership plan that cost $29/month and requires no long-term commitment. A six-month plan costs $120.

Code CombatBest for older kids, Code Combat uses an interactive, competitive gameplay mode to stimulate learning. Once you set up your parent account, kids can be online, playing in seconds. FREE

CodemojiPut those ubiquitous emojis to work in an educational way with this website that eschews complex codes for user-friendly expressions, quite literally. Kids learn to code by using emojis to substitute for html or css codes. They’ll have so much fun, they won’t realize the work they’re putting in. Codemoji plans start at $9.99 for three months, but include up to five kids’ accounts in that price.

Code MonsterParticularly good for kids, Code Monster features two adjacent boxes. One displays code, the other shows what the code does. As you play with the code (with some help from a prompt), you learn what each command does. FREE

Khan AcademyKnown for its extensive and challenging math games, Khan Academy also has basic programming tutorials that teach kids how to build graphics, animations, interactive visualizations, and more. FREE

LightbotPredominantly an app-based program, Lightbot offers a FREE demo online as part of its Hour of Code. Like what you see? Its pair of low-cost programming apps are all-ages friendly. Available for iOs, Android, and Amazon devices for $2.99.

ScratchDesigned by MIT students and aimed at children ages 8 to 16, this easy-to-use programming language lets kids build almost anything they can dream. There are no obscure lines of code here. Instead, arrange and snap together Scratch blocks as if they were virtual Legos. But it’s more than just a coding guide, it’s a vibrant online community of programmers who swap ideas and inspiration. FREE

StencylInspired by Scratch’s snapping blocks system, this software allows users to create simple games for iOS, Android, Flash, Windows, Linux, and Mac systems. If your child is serious about it, there are paid pro plans that come with advanced functionality.

Tech RocketFounded by iD Tech, Tech Rocket’s free platform allows access to a dozen classes. For those looking for a more advanced experience, paid subscriptions are $19 per month.

This is an interesting article. What was it exactly? History’s most fascinating misquote. “Houston, we have a problem’: The amazing history of the iconic Apollo 13 misquote. https://www.washingtonpost.com/podcasts/retropod/historys-most-fascinating-misquote/ To me, the differences are small, especially since the problem was not resolved at the time of the radio message,and could have lead to the death of […]

This is an interesting article. What was it exactly? History’s most fascinating misquote.

“Houston, we have a problem’: The amazing history of the iconic Apollo 13 misquote.